Following first career loss, Bellator 62's Rene Nazare focused on fulfilling dreams

Three-time Brazilian jiu-jitsu world champion Rene Nazare (10-1 MMA, 3-1
UFC) moved to the U.S. with one goal in mind: to find success in mixed martial arts.

After racking up 10-straight wins to open his career, it looked like “The Brazilian Bomber” was well on his way.

However, Nazare stumbled against Jacob Kirwan in an October 2011 matchup. Despite the setback, Nazare earned a spot in Bellator’s season-six lightweight tournament, and he thinks the recent failure has given him a proper understanding of what it takes to earn the promotion’s 155-pound title.

“I have no excuses,” Nazare told MMAjunkie.com (www.mmajunkie.com) in his native Portuguese. “Everyone occasionally loses. I come from a jiu-jitsu background, where one has to face a lot of defeat while improving one’s ground game.

“That particular fight was the fifth one in a row last year. I also took many of my fights on short notice, as was the case against Kirwan. I had very little time to get ready. I had just won a fight in late August, and I was asked to fight again in October. The kind of person I am, of course I accepted it. But one good thing I learned is not to fight just to fight. I learned to train, prepare, have a good camp for facing my opponent. I also learned that I needed to improve my takedown defense.”

Born in Teresopolis, Brazil, Nazare started training in jiu-jitsu at 16 years old. Working under Nova Uniao’s Rodrigo “Feijao” Antonio Garcia, Nazare quickly excelled in the art and began teaching others just one year into his own career as a grappler. He would eventually claim three world titles in jiu-jitsu, but a 2004 MMA victory sparked a change in career direction.

“I had already been a world champion in Brazilian jiu-jitsu,” Nazare said. “I had reached the pinnacle in the field. I was very motivated in going above and beyond mere grappling competitions with the same opponents. I wanted to expand my skill set into mixed martial arts.

“I had one MMA fight in Brazil in 2004 and I told my teacher that’s what I wanted to pursue. He didn’t want to teach MMA since he didn’t have a striking or wrestling instructor. So we talked about it and we decided I’d compete in the Mundials, and I’d remain America for six months to pursue MMA.”

That was 2007, and Nazare decided to extend his six-month plan. It wasn’t an easy path, but the Brazilian decided the U.S. was going to be his new home.

“I had no contacts, no academy,” Nazare said. “I arrived in Cape Code, Mass. I worked various jobs – as a roofer, construction worker, deliveryman, at a fish market. I had some eight different jobs.”

He finally settled into Ithaca, N.Y., where he now serves as a jiu-jitsu instructor. He picked up six wins on the regional circuit before making his way to Bellator in 2011. Once signed, he picked up three-straight non-tournament wins. Then came the loss to Kirwan and the lessons provided by Nazare’s first professional setback.

“You’ll notice that all current champs like Jose Aldo, Jon Jones and Anderson Silva all have losses,” Nazare said. “No one is undefeated.

“It was a valuable experience. I knew I was tired. I knew I had been fighting all year. I teach two jiu-jitsu classes per day. Then I have Muay Thai classes too. I’m at the academy all day long, actually, since morning time. Most fighters either only fight or only teach, but I do both. I have two jobs. No one is a machine. That defeat ultimately was a learning experience.”

Despite the loss, Nazare’s previous performances earned him a spot in Bellator’s season-six lightweight tournament. He now meets Thiago Michel (9-2 MMA, 0-0 BFC) at Friday’s Bellator 63 event at Laredo Energy Arena in Laredo, Texas. The fight is one of four-main card matchups that air on MTV2.

It’s Nazare’s first fight since the loss, and he said he’s changed his approach to preparation.

“I’ve been training since the start of the year,” Nazare said. “I had more than two months of hard training. My weight is ideal right now. I’m well conditioned, physically. Psychologically, I’m also ready. I was ready to fight two weeks ago. Now it’s just time to sharpen my game during the final stretch.

“Now I’m training to work up a sweat and stay mobile while reducing the likelihood of being injured. During this final period, if I’m in a bad spot, I’ll tap. My training partners know to dial things back a bit. We’re concentrating on technique and not on hard combat.”

In Michel, Nazare faces a dangerous striker who has earned all nine of his career wins via knockout. Nazare knows his Brazilian opponent is explosive but isn’t convinced his striking game will be as effective competing under the unified rules.

“I watched his videos in Brazil, but things are different,” Nazare said. “In Brazil, you can kick and knee the head of a downed opponent, and his knockouts were these sort of strikes, but that’s illegal here. It’s a good tip for me, and he won’t be able to implement his usual approach. At the same time, it could be a negative thing because he could forget the rules and hit me the same way.

“I feel I’m a more complete fighter since I’ve been here for five years, training with American partners, including wrestling and standup in addition to my original jiu-jitsu skills. It will be a great fight.”

For Nazare, Friday night represents the first step toward earning a shot at Bellator’s lightweight belt. But it also marks a chance to recognize a dream that began in Brazil several years ago. Nazare hopes to parlay Bellator success into a a return trip home and a chance to bring his family together again.

“I want to encourage everyone to train hard, doing the right things, because this always yields good results,” Nazare said. “My motivation is to be able to visit Brazil and see my family there. I’ve been here for five years. Now I’m fighting for the chance Bellator granted me to become a champion. I hope to win and to be able to afford to go see my parents, my siblings, my nephews and nieces, cousins, uncles, friends and my old team. Also I wish to bring my children here. I live in New York, and they live in Massachusetts. During my fight camp I go a long time without seeing them.

“My motivation is my family. I hope that towards the end of this year I’ll be able finally travel to Brazil since I haven’t had a vacation day in two years. And to anyone who wishes to pursue this in life, I say, ‘Dedicate yourself.'”